Green Lantern Corps #16

FINALLY!

I admit that I was getting a little testy there, staggering into my locak comicbook store expecting to find this little tome waiting for me...an waiting...and waiting. I take back all the bad words I said, it was worth it. As usual, Mr. Gibbons and Mr. Gleason hit it out of the proverbial ballpark once again.

You may recall, that a huge contingent of the Sinestro Corp had attacked Mogo, along with the sentient evil city Ranx, and the Children of the White Lobe. The Guardians, who are scared to death because of that nasty little prophecy, dispatched Kilowog and a number of Lanterns to help protect Mogo. Because basically, without Mogo, the Lanterns are seriously screwed. It is Mogo who directs the rings to new recruits if the wearer is deceased among other things. Besides...Mogo is just too cool.

Arisia has been assigned by Salakk to keep a close eye on Sodam Yat, per orders of the Guardians. Arisia isn't too thrilled by this, but she's doing her best, and in fact has to disobey a direct order by Kilowog to go chasing after Yat into Ranx itself. The Lanterns who are fighting a rearguard battle on Mogo are getting creamed, but in proper Green Lantern fashion, they continue to fight as best they can.

Meanwhile in Ranx, Sodam Yat, Issamot, Chthos and Stel, shortly followed by Arisia are looking for a way to shut him down. Ranx keeps bellowing for the head of Guy Gardner. This rather puzzles the rest of the Lanterns until Chthos explains the loss of dignity to Ranx due to Guy's rather...interesting methods during their last incounter.

Back on the surface of Mogo, Green Man has come up with an interesting strategy. On his planet there is a species that can "reabsorb its life-energy to transmute its soft skin into an impenetrataable shell. Then it sleeps near death until the danger is past and it can come back to life". He suggests that Mogo do the same thing, protecting his core until his fellow Lanterns can repel the Sinestro Corps. Vath thinks that this is just a dandy idea, as does Mogo. I like it, because in a weird way, it sort of fulfills the prophecy without killing off Mogo. It works pretty well, and Kilowog and the rest are now trying to find all the Children of the White Lobe before they can detonate their blink bombs.

Somehow, Mogo quietly communicates with Sodam Yat who is hiding out on Ranx,and explains in part at least, some of the mystery and the prophecy concerning the two of them. The Guardians are terrified that Yat will be killed, but he refuses to get out, which rather puzzles Arisia. For a rookie, Yat seems to be getting the hang of things awfully quickly, and he takes charge too, which rather ticks off Issamot. Ranx is so pissed that he's overloading his gravity disruptors, and losing control of the source of their power, which means that he may end up blowing up a black hole. Ranx doesn't strike me as being awfully bright.

So, they have to go in and try and disable Ranx as quickly as possible, and to my sorrow, poor Chthos gets killed by Enkafos, the Sinestro baddie. I LIKED Chthos. Dagnabit. Stel is trying to overload Ranx's circuits, and just then all the Lanterns get the news from Oa that it's ok to kill Sinestro Corps.

The reactions to this bit of news are quite varied. Green Man seems stunned, Vath is thrilled, Kilowog is shocked. Suddenly the tide is turned, and Sinestro rings are zipping all over. Even Salakk shows up and takes out the last Child of the White Lobe, who incidentally was trying to explode Kilowog. Salakk is very cool and collected, and just says one word when he has the little bugger in an energy ball.

"...incinerate."

Whoa!

Sodam Yat and the other Lanterns in Ranx have just gotten the lethal force directive, and in a scene that freezes my blood anyway, Yat gets this terrifying smile on his face, and his eyes glow with the Lantern symbol...just like the Guardians, as he and Isamot go to town on the remaining bad guys. Arisia however, just can't bring herself to kill.

Stel can't override Ranx's core, and in his hate and rage, Ranx is getting dangerously close to blowing up. Yat gets the rest of them out of there, and calmly and as cooly as Salakk, he fires on Ranx...who explodes with spectacular results. They all think that Yat is a gone goose, but he shows up a bit tattered and battered, but otherwise in one piece. They all decide to head back to Oa, for the final confrontation. Since Mogo can also kill now, they figure he'll be safe.

And then they get the word from a slightly busy Hal Jordan. The confrontation isn't on Oa...it's on Earth...and he really could use a bit of help.

The art just flows, and it is all nonstop action throughout. It's about time that something is going right for the Lanterns! Too bad about poor Chthos though. I do have my doubts about the ultimate wisdom of the Guardians decision to use lethal force however. Some of the Lanterns took to the new rule with glee, some with resignation. Some are soldiers, some wanted vengeance, and others are troubled by it. All of which sets up some interesting ideas down the road.